Circuit interrupter control system



June 23, 1931. A. J. A. PETERSON 1,311,476

CIRCUIT INTERRUPTER CONTROL SYSTEM Filed April 15, 1926 j Aufomahc I Manual fig @1 48 46' WITNESSES: J3 INVENTOR @Q J 449904 r e/9x100 WM 0 ZTTQRNEY means are provided for controlling the opera- Patented June 23, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT @FFECE ALFRED A. PETERSON, OF WILKINSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO \VESTING- HOUSE ELECTRIC & MANUFACTURING COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF PENNSYL- VANIA Application filed April 15,

i My invention relates'to circuit-interrupter- 2 systems wherein both automatic and manual tion of a circuit'interrupter.

An object of m invention is to provide a 'sy stemxfor contro ling the operation of a cirrcuit interrupter comprising-both automatic and manual means'for-closing and tripping the samerand means for'preventing the operation of the automatic'closing means when the manual-tripping means are actuated.

- My'invention will be better understood by reference to the following-description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Figure- 1 is -'a diagrammatic representation" of :,8.I1 electrical system em- 'bodying the principalifeatures oflmy invention, and=Figure 2"is an enlarged view of. the

circuit interrupter shown -i-n=Figure 1. 7

Referring to the drawings, a circuit interrupter 1 is connected betweentwosections or portions'of an electric circuit 2. The circuit.

-- interrupter 1 is biased toward its open posito the energization of a closing coil 4. When the circuit interrupter 1 is so actuated to its tion by a tension spring 3 and is adapted to be actuated to its closed position in response closed position, it is maintained in this position by reason of the engagement of two latching members 5 and 6. V e

The latching member 5 is secured to the operating mechanism of the circuit interrupter 1, and the latching member 6 is pivotally supported by a pin 7. The latching memher 6 is normally maintained in engagement with the latching member 5 by a compression'spring 8 but is adapted to be actuated out of engagement with the latching member '5 in response to the energization of a trip coil 9 which causes the upper end of a solenoid plunger thereof to strike against the latching member 6.

The trip coil 9 may be connected in circuit with a battery or other suitable source of energy 10, either by the operation of an overload relay 11 or by the actuation of a manually operable control switch 12.

The operating coilof the overload relay is connected to the secondary winding of a se- CIRCUIT INTERRUPTER CONTROL SYSTEM 1926. Serial No. 102,206.

ries transformer 13 that is associated with the 1 control systems andmore particularly to such a pivotally mounted arm 14 upon which are mounted two contact-bridging members 15 and '16. The members 15 and 16 are adapted to engage contact members 17 and 18, respectively, when the arm 14 is actuated to the left or to the right by means of a handle 19 at the lower end thereof. The arm '14 is normally held in mid-position by springs 20, as indicated in the drawings.

A reversible electric motor 21, comprising an armature member 22 and two field-magnet windings 23 and 24:, is adapted to drive a drum or cylinder 25, upon'which a plurality of contact-bridging members26, 27 and 28 are mounted. A plurality of stationary contact members or'fingers 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34 and 35'are so mounted as to be engaged by the contact-bridging members 26, 27 and 28 as the drum 25 is rotated by the motor 21.

The energization of the closing coil 4 of the circuit interrupter 1 is automatically controlled by the engagement of the contact fingers 32, 33, 34 and 35 by the bridging members 27 and 28 when the drum 25 is rotated by the motor 21. This control is effected through the intermediate operation of a relay 36 which comprises two switches 37 and 38 that are closed when the operating coil of this relay is energized.

The energization of the closing coil 4 of the circuit interrupter 1 may also be controlled by the manually operable switch 12. A transfer switch. 39, which is shown as a single-pole double-throw knife switch, is closed in its left-hand position (indicated on the drawing as the automatic position) to subject the closing coil 4 to the control of the motor 21 and the drum 25, or it may be closed in the right-hand or manual position to subject the coil 4 to the control of the manually operable switch 12. A sliding contactbridging member 40 is adapted to be actuated when the manually operable switch 12 is actu- 42 at opposite ends of the member are engaged by the upper end of the arm 14 of the switch 12.

\Vhen the handle 19 or the switch 12 is ac t-uated tot-he right, into the trip position, he upper end of the arm 14 engages the pin 41 to actuate the bridging member 40 to the left to disen age a contact member 43 which was formerly engaged thereby.. Electrical conn ction thereby brokenbetween the contact member 43 and a contact member 44 that is also engaged by the bridging member 40. \Vhen the handle 19 of the swi'tch'1 2 is released, it is returned to mid-position bythe springs 20, but the bridging member 40 is not again actuated thereby until the. handle '19 is actuated to the left into the ..closesposition. Vhen the handle 19 isso actuated, the

upper end or" the arm 14 engages the pin 42' to return the bridging member 40 to the position indicated inthe drawings, in' which. both or the contactmembers 43 and 44 are engaged thereby. m': 'a

In describing the: operation of the system embodying my inventioinlet itfirst be assumed that the circuit interrupter 1 is latched in its closed position undernormal operating conditions and that the transfer switch 39. is in its left-hand or automatic positions It will also be assumed thatthe last previous actuation of the switch l2.was'-to the-close position. The bridging 'member.-.40 -w11l therefore be in the position indicated in thedrawings, in whichboth of the'contactmeinbers 43 and 44 are engaged thereby.

If the circuit 2 is now traversed by current equal to or exceedingthe value atawhich the overload relay'll iscalibratedito operate, this relay will close-its, switch toconnect the trip coil 9 of the circuit interrupter-1 -be tween the terminals of the-battery -10.''Thc trip coil 9 isthus energized: to actuate the latching member 6 out of engagement with the latching member 5, and the circuit interrupter 1 is actuated to its open position by the tension springv3. i

When the circuit interrupter 1 reaches its open position, two auxiliary contact 'IDGIII- bers are engaged by a contact-bridging member 46 that is actuated by the circuit interrupter. The-engagement of the contact members 45 by the bridging member 46complctcs an energizing circuit for the motor 21, which extends from the upper terminal of the battery 10 through the armature member 22 and field-magnet winding 23 of the inotor'21, contact members 45 and bridging member 46, contact finger 31, bridging member 26 and contact finger 30 of the drum 25', contact member 43, bridging member 40 and contact member 44 of the switch 12, and transfer switch 39, in its automatic position, to the lower terminal of the battery 10. The field-magnet winding 23 is so disposed with respect to the armature member 22' of the motor 21 that,

when the motor 21 is energized in this manner, it turns the drum 24 from position I to position II, in which the contact fingers 32 and 33 are engaged by the first one of the set of contact-bridging members 27. A second contact-bridging member 47, that 'is actuated by the circuit interrupter 1, is adapted to engage a pair of contact members 48 when the circuit interrupter 1 is in its open position. When the contact fingers 32 and 33 are engaged by one of the bridging members 27, as previously described, a circuit is completed from'the upper terminal of the battery lO through contact members 48 and the bridging member 47 of the circuit interrupter-l, the operating coil of the relay 36, contact. fingerr33, bridging member 27 and contact finger 32 of the drum 25, contact inembers'43 andv 44 and bridging member 40 or the switch 12, and switch 739' to the lower =:terminai of the batteryl0a1 The operating coil of the1relay..36:isjtl1us energizedz from the battery 10 to,cause' this relay to close its .switches, 37. and 38. The

"switch 37- is connectedin parallel: relation tq,

sithe contact fingers. 32 and 33 in=such manner that the-energization of the operating'coil of the relay 36 .willbe maintained after the -.contact'fingers32 and 33 are disengaged by the bridging member 27. .7 i v :The switch 38 of the relay '36 is connected --in circuit with the closingcoil 4 'of thecircuit interrupter l, but this circuitvis not. comapleteduntil the drum 25 has been turned to POSitlOHu-III, iniavhich the contacttfingeis 34 --:and-

are engaged-bythefirst one of the set of bridging members 28; Vhen the drum has reached this position, the. energizing ci 1'- cuit or the closingcoil4 is completed from c the-upper terminal of the battery 10, through the contact members 48'andbridging member 47 of the circuit interrupter 1, closing coil 4, switch 38 of relay- 36, contact finger 35. bridging member 28 and contact finger 34 of the drum 26, contact members 43 and '14 and bridging member 40 of the switch 12, and switch 39, to the lower terminal of the battery 10.

The closing coil 4 thereupon actuates the circuit interrupter 1 into its closed position where it is held by the latching members 5 and 6. -As the circuit interrupter 1 is so closed, the closing coil 4 is deenergized by reason of the fact that the contact members 48 are disengaged by the bridging member 47.

As will be readily understood, the energizing circuit for the closing coil 4 must be maintained until the latching members 5 and 6 have been actuate-d into such relative post tions that their engagement will be effected hen the-coil is deenergized and the interrupter starts to open.

The disengagement of contact members 48 by the bridging member 47 may ibe'delayed in any suitable manner, in order that the closing coil 4 will not be deenergized until the latching members of the circuit interrupter are in their proper relative positions.

As an example of how this may be accom plished, reference may be had to Fig. 2, which shows the circuit interrupter in the open position. As shown, the bridging member 47 is slidably mounted on the shaft of the circuit interrupter between stop members 51 and 52 and is biased downwardly or towards the bridging position, by a compression spring 53. When the circuit interrupter is open, the bridging member 47 is held in engagement with contact members 48. The spring 52 is so designedthat it will always exert a biasing force on the bridging member 47, regardless of the position of the circuit interrupter, so that the energizing circuit for the coil 4 is maintained until stop member 52 engages the bridging member 47 and the interrupter has reached a latching position.

The stop member 52 may be made adjustable in order that the bridging member may be timed to disengage at the proper time to effect a latching operation.

The disengagement of the contact members 48 by the bridging member 47 also in terrupts the energizing circuit for the operating coil of the relay 36, thereby permitting this relay to open its switches 37 and 38. The contact members 45 are also disengaged by the bridging member 46 when the circuitintel-rupter 1 is closed, thereby interrupting the energizing circuit for the motor 21 through its field-magnet winding 23.

In the closed position of the circuit interrupter 1., the bridging member 46 engages two contact members 49, which are connected in circuit with the motor 21 through the fieldmagnet winding 24 thereoff Thus, when the circuit interrupter 1 is closed, a circuit for energizing the motor 21 is completed from the upper terminal of the battery 10, through the armature member 22 and field-magnet winding 24 of the motor 21. contact members 49 and bridging member 46 of the circuit interrupter 1, contact finger 29, bridging member 26 and contact finger 30 of the drum 25, contact members 43 and 44 and bridging mem ber 40 of the switch 12 and switch 39, to the lower terminal of the battery 10.

The field-magnet winding 24 of the motor 21 is so disposed with respect to the armature member 22 thereof that, when the motor 21 is energized in this manner, it turns the drum in the reverse direction toward its original position I. If the circuit interrupter 1 remains in its closed position, this reverse operation of the drum 25 will continue until it reaches position I. In this position the contact finger 29 is disengaged by the bridging member 26 to interrupt the energizing cir cuit for the motor 21, thereby stopping the operation of the motor and drum. The

bridging member 26 and the contact fingers 29, 30 and 31 thus act as limit switches to preclude further energization of the motor 21 when the drum 25 reaches its extreme position.

If the abnormal condition which caused the opening of the circuit interrupter 1 still exists when the circuit interrupter is closed, the overload relay 11 will again close its switch to trip the circuit interrupter 1 a second time and the motor 21 will, therefore, be energized through its field-magnet winding 23 to continue the forward turning of the drum 25. The contact fingers 32 and 33 are engaged by the bridging members 27 and the contact members 34 and 35 are engaged by the bridging members 28 alternately to cause reclosure of the circuit in terrupter 1 each time that the contact fingers 34 and 35 are engaged by the bridging members 28.

If the abnormal conditions persist until the circuit interrupter has been closed and opened three times, the drum 25 will reach position VII, in which position the contact finger 31 will be disengaged by the bridging member 26 to preclude further energization of the motor 21. Further automatic operation of the circuit interrupter 1 will thus-be precluded until the fault which caused the repeated tripping thereof has been remedied, at which time the circuit interrupter may be closed manually. Thereupon, the motor 21 will be energized through its field-magnet winding 24 to actuate the drum 25 back to position I.

The equipment is then ready for further automatic operation when required. A fuller description of this automatic operation may be had by reference to copending application, Serial No. 610,784, for periodic reclosing circuit breakers, filed January 5, 1923, by Henry A. Travers, and assigned to the Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company.

If, for any reason, it should be desired that the circuit interrupter 1 be tripped immediately in the absence of conditions which would cause the operation of the overload relay 11, this tripping may be accomplished by actuating the manually operable switch 12 to its trip position. In this position, the contact members 17 are engaged by the bridging member 15 to connect the trip coil 9 between terminals of the battery 10, thereby effecting energization of this coil to trip the circuit interrupter 1.

Under such conditions, it would not be desirable that the circuit interrupter 1 should be reclosed by the immediate operation of the motor 21 and drum 25, and it is for the purpose of preventing this operation that the bridging member 40 and the contact members 43 and 44 have been provided in conjunction with the switch 12. It will be seen that, when the bridging member 40 has been nected to the battery 10 through the switch 39 is now disconnected to preclude further operation thereof until the switch 12 is actuated to its close position.

Thus, if an emergency or special condition arises which demands the manual tripping of the circuit interrupter 1, this tripping may be accomplished without any possibility of the circuit interrupter 1 being immediately reclosed by the automatic controlling equipment. When it is desired that the circuit interrupter 1 be subjected again to the control of the automatic equipment, the switch 12- will be actuated to the close position, thereby returning the bridging member 40 into engagement with the contact members 43 and 44 to reestablish the energizing circuits for the automatic equipment.

When it is desired that the circuit interrupter 1 be entirely removed from the control of the automatic equipment and subjected directly to the control of the switch 12 for both closing and tripping operations, the transfer switch 39 will be closed in its righthand or manual position. The circuit of the closing coil 4 is then completed directly upon the actuation of the. switch 12 to its close position. The circuit for energizing the closing coil 4 in this manner extends from the upper terminal of the battery 10 through the contact members 48 and bridging member 47 of the circuit interrupter 1, the closing coil 4, the contact members 18 and the bridging member. 16 of the switch 12, and the switch 39, in its right-hand position, to the lower terminal of the battery 10. The circuit interrupter 1 may be tripped either by the operation of the overload relay 11 or by the actuation of the switch 12 to its trip position, as was the case when the switch 39 was closed in its left-hand or automaticposition.

hen the switch 39 is closed in its manual position the actuation of the bridging mem her 40 by the switch 12 has no effect, since the automatic equipment is already disconnected from the battery 10 at the switch. 39. l lilrewise, when the switch 39 is closed in its automatic position, the actuation of the switch 12 to its close position does not cil'ect the closure of the circuit interrupter 1, since the circuit through the contact members 18 and the bridging member 16 is broken at the switch 39.

From the foregoing description, it will be seen that I have provided a system for controlling the operation of a circuit breaker wherein both automatic and manually operable means are provided for both closing and tripping the interrupter. The transfer switch 39, when in one position, renders the automatic closing means operative and the manually operable closing means inoperative. When the transfer switch is in the opposite position, the automatic closing means are rendered inoperative and the manually operable closing means operative. Both the automatic and the manually operable means for tripping the circuit interrupter are operative at all times, and the actuation of'the manually operable tripping means always precludes further actuation of the automatic closing means until the-manually operable means have been actuated 'to the closing position.

While I have shown only one embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that various changes and modifications may be made in the circuits and apparatus disclosed without departing from the spirit and'scope of my invention, as set forth in the appended claims.

I' claim as my invention;

1. In an electrical system, in combination, a circuit interrupter, closing means and-tripping means therefor, automatic means for rendering the closing means operative, a manually operable switch having a neutral position and two operative positions, means for returning said switch to and maintaining it in its neutral position after an actuation thereof 'to' either of its operative positions, means cooperating with said switch when it is actuated to one of its operative positions to render the closing means operative, means cooperating with said switch when it is actuated to the other of its operative-positions to render the tripping means operative, and a contact member actuatedby said switch when said switch is actuated from-its neutral position to the operative position other than the operative position to which it was last previously actuated, but unaffected by the actuation of said switch to the same operative position to which it was last previously actuated and by the return of said switch from either of its operative positions to its neutral position, said contact member being adapted to render the aforesaid automatic means operative when the said manually operable switch is actuated to said one of its operative positions to render the circuit interrupter closing means operative, and to render said automatic means inoperative when said switch is actuated to its other operative position to render the tripping means efiective ind a transfer switch for selectively rendering either the automatic means or the manually operable switch ineffective to operate said closing means.

2. In an electrical system, in combination, a circuit interrupter, closing means and tripping means therefor, automatic means for rendering the closing means operative, manually operable means for rendering the closing means and the tripping means operative, transfer means for selectively controlling the effectiveness of the automatic means and the manually operable means, said manually operable means being so arranged that a predetermined actuation thereof renders the tripping means operative regardless of the condition of the transfer means, and means controlled by the manually operable means for rendering the automatic means inoperative when said manually operable means are so actuated as to render the tripping means operative while the transfer means are in condition to render the automatic means operative.

3. In an electrical system, in combination, a circuit interrupter, closing means and tripping means therefor, automatic means for rendering the closing means operative, manually operable means for rendering the closing means and the tripping means operative, transfer means for selectively controlling the effectiveness of the automatic means and the manually operable means, said manually operable means being so arranged that a predetermined actuation thereof renders the tripping means operative regardless of the condition of the transfer means, and means controlled by the manually operable means for rendering the automatic means inoperative when said manually operable means are so actuated as to render the tripping means operative while the transfer means are in condition to render the automatic means operative and for maintaining the automatic means inoperative until said manually operable means are so actuated as to render the closing means operative.

4:. In a reclosing system for a circuit breaker having opening and closing coils, the combination with automatically and manually operable switches for controlling said coils, of a switch having two positions, adapted in one position to render said manually operable switch inefi'ective to close said breaker and in the other position to render one of said automatically operable switches ineffective to close said breaker, both the automatic and manual switches for tripping said breaker remaining effective regardless of the position of the two-position switch.

5. A reclosing system for a circuit breaker having opening and closing means, including automatic and manually operable means for controlling said opening and closing means and a transfer switch for selectively rendering either the automatic or manually operable means ineffective to operate said closing means without affecting the operation of the tripping means by either the automatic or manually operable means.

6. In an electrical system, in combination, a circuit interrupter provided with closing and tripping means, means for automatically eflecting the operation of the tripping means in response to the occurrence of an abnormal condition in the system, means for effecting the operation of the closing means to automatically reclose the circuit interrupter after the occurrence of an automatic tripping operation, a manually-operable switch for effecting the operation of the closing and tripping means independently of the automatic reclosing means, and means for selectively controlling the eflectiveness of the automatic reclosing means and the manually-operable switch, said manually-operable switch being disposed, when in a predetermined operating position, to prevent the functioning of the automatic reclosing means independently of the means for selectively controlling the effectiveness of the automatic-reclosing means and the manually-operable switch.

7. In a control system for a circuit breaker, in combination, a circuit breaker havin opening and closing means, automatic and manual means for controlling said opening and closing means to effect opening and closing operations of the breaker, and means for selectix ely suspending the operation of the closing means by either the automatic or manual control means, said means being 'disposed to maintain the opening means operative regardless of the operating condition of the closing means.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 14th da of A ril, 1926.

ALFRED J. A. %ETE SON. 

